This invention relates to a portable workbench of the collapsible type including a foldable support stand and a workpiece supporting and clamping assembly supported thereon.
The prior art has provided a variety of types of workbench or workbench-like structures including a foldable support stand which serves to support a tray or other suitable form of table-top-like surface. Many of these structures are suitable for use as serving stands or tables for supporting dishes etc., in restaurants and the like. Typical examples of such structures may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 2,354,941 dated Aug. 1, 1944 to Treitel, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,106,295 dated Oct. 8, 1963 to Berlin, and in U.S. Pat. No. 2,802,578 dated Aug. 13, 1967 to Barile. The prior art also includes various arrangements wherein the support stand is operatively connected to a workbench such as in U.S. Pat. No. 1,688,533 issued Oct. 23, 1948 to Eger. In this arrangement the support legs are interconnected together by spaced apart linkage members which maintain the legs in parallelism in both the open support position and the folded storage position. A more recent and highly successful development is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,615,087 dated Oct. 26, 1971 to R. P. Hickman. This patent discloses a workbench arrangement including a work supporting and clamping assembly which is interconnected to a base structure by supporting members which are capable of movement between a collapsed position wherein the workbench portion is in close juxtaposition to the base structure and a working position in which the workbench is spaced from and supported above the base structure.